Conventional process surveillance schemes are sensitive only to gross changes in the mean value of a process signal or to large steps or spikes that exceed some threshold limit value. These conventional methods suffer from either a large number of false alarms (if thresholds are set too close to normal operating levels) or from a large number of missed (or delayed) alarms (if the thresholds are set too expansively). Moreover, most conventional methods cannot perceive the onset of a process disturbance or sensor signal error that gives rise to a signal below the threshold level or an alarm condition. Most conventional methods also do not account for the relationship between measurements made by one sensor relative to another redundant sensor or between measurements made by one sensor relative to predicted values for the sensor.
Recently, improved methods for process surveillance have developed from the application of certain aspects of artificial intelligence technology. Specifically, parameter estimation methods have been developed using either statistical, mathematical or neural network techniques to learn a model of the normal patterns present in a system of process signals. After learning these patterns, the learned model is used as a parameter estimator to create one or more predicted (virtual) signals given a new observation of the actual process signals. Further, high sensitivity surveillance methods have been developed for detecting process and signal faults by analysis of a mathematical comparison between an actual process signal and its virtual signal counterpart. In particular, such a mathematical comparison is most often performed on a residual error signal computed as, for example, the difference between an actual process signal and its virtual signal counterpart.
Parameter estimation based surveillance schemes have been shown to provide improved surveillance relative to conventional schemes for a wide variety of assets including industrial, utility, business, medical, transportation, financial, and biological systems. However, parameter estimation based surveillance schemes have in general shown limited success when applied to complex processes. Applicants recognize and believe that this is because the parameter estimation model for a complex process will, in general, produce residual error signals having a non-Gaussian probability density function. Moreover, a review of the known prior-art discloses that virtually all such surveillance systems developed to date utilize or assume a Gaussian model of the residual error signal probability density function for fault detection. Hence, a significant shortcoming of the known prior-art is that, inter alia, parameter estimation based surveillance schemes will produce numerous false alarms due to the modeling error introduced by the assumption of a Gaussian residual error signal probability density function. The implication for parameter estimation based surveillance schemes is that the fault detection sensitivity must be significantly reduced to prevent false alarms thereby limiting the utility of the method for process surveillance. An alternative for statistically derived fault detection models is to mathematically pre-process the residual error signals to remove non-Gaussian elements prior to using the residual error signals in the fault detection model; however this approach requires an excess of additional processing and also limits the sensitivity of the surveillance method. Therefore, the implication of assuming a Gaussian residual error signal probability density function for a parameter estimation based surveillance scheme is simply that the system becomes less accurate thereby degrading the sensitivity and utility of the surveillance method.
Many attempts to apply statistical fault detection techniques to surveillance of assets such as industrial, utility, business, medical, transportation, financial, and biological processes have met with poor results in part because the fault detection models used or assumed a Gaussian residual error signal probability density function.
In one specific example, a multivariate state estimation technique based surveillance system for the Space Shuttle Main Engine's telemetry data was found to produce numerous false alarms when a Gaussian residual error fault detection model was used for surveillance. In this case, the surveillance system's fault detection threshold parameters were desensitized to reduce the false alarm rate; however, the missed alarm rate then became too high for practical use in the telemetry data monitoring application.
Moreover, current fault detection techniques for surveillance of assets such as industrial, utility, business, medical, transportation, financial, and biological processes either fail to recognize the surveillance performance limitations that occur when a Gaussian residual error model is used or, recognizing such limitations, attempt to artificially conform the observed residual error data to fit the Gaussian model. This may be attributed, in part, to the relative immaturity of the field of artificial intelligence and computer-assisted surveillance with regard to real-world process control applications. Additionally, a general failure to recognize the specific limitations that a Gaussian residual error model imposes on fault decision accuracy for computer-assisted surveillance is punctuated by an apparent lack of known prior art teachings that address potential methods to overcome this limitation. In general, the known prior-art teaches computer-assisted surveillance solutions that either ignore the limitations of the Gaussian model for reasons of mathematical convenience or attempt to conform the actual residual error data to the artificial Gaussian model, for example, by using frequency domain filtering and signal whitening techniques.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a surveillance system and method that overcomes the significant shortcomings of the known prior-art as delineated hereinabove.